- Google has launched a new AI experiment that calls businesses for you
- It can find out prices and availability and then summarize info
- It’s limited to auto shops and nail salons for now
You can remember Duplex, Google’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool that will call businesses and make reservations on your behalf using a very realistic AI voice. Well, now the search giant is back with another very similar offer that gives a whole new meaning to the expression “RoboCalling”.
This time is called Google’s service asking for me. The idea is that it can make the heavy lifting for you by directly calling businesses to get information about pricing, accessibility and more based on what you want to find out.
Ask for me is part of Google’s experimental laboratory department. Google gives the example of searching for expressions such as “oil replacement” or “nail salons nearby” and it seems limited to auto shops and nail salons for now. Once you have searched, you can tell me ask me what you want to know about the business, then AI calls to call the company and find out the information you have. When the call is complete, it will send you a summary of prices and accessibility.
According to Rose Yao, a Google product leader in San Francisco, “This uses the same underlying Duplex -Tech used to make restaurant reservations via search/map.” It suggests that duplex and ask for me essentially are two sides of the same AI coin where Duplex focuses on eateries and asks for me to help you get more info from local businesses.
How to use ask for me
The idea behind me is that it saves you time by completing the call while doing something else. Right now it works on desktop and mobile. Note that you need to access it via Chrome Web browser and must be based in a country working with Google Labs (this includes the United States but excludes, for example, Europe).
To get started, go to the Question ME -Web site and select the waiting list button. Once you have accessed, try searching for tasks or companies (such as Google’s examples listed above).
When you do, you see a box entitled Ask to me on the page. Select the Come on the button, select the service you need, and select Next, add a few more details and tell Google when you need the Service, and then enter your phone number or E email address. Google says you need to get an answer within 30 minutes.
Yao added that Ask about me reveals that its calls are made by an AI and companies can opt out of it if they wish. It is still not clear how companies will respond to receiving calls from an incredible lifelike AI that can hardly be distinguished from a human. Time will show that one.
